College World Series history

Welcome to the College World Series historical database, brought to you by Omaha.com and the Omaha World-Herald. This page is our growing home for historical information about past NCAA baseball championships, which have been played in Omaha since 1950.

You can read historical information for each year of the CWS, dating to 1947. We also created a history page for every school that has played in the CWS. Click a banner on the main page or select a team or year from these dropdown menus.

Participating teams

Base running key to Arizona victory

Series highlights

Arizona coach Jerry Kindall cited aggressiveness on the bases as a key in his team's 5-3 championship-clinching victory.

He said the Wildcats' sixth-inning run — a by-product of Dwight Taylor's steal of second — helped secure the victory over Hawaii.

The second-ranked Wildcats, by beating No. 5 Hawaii, became the eighth team in CWS history to win the title after losing in the first round. Other teams to win the championship after losing their opener were Texas, 1950; Southern California, 1958, 1963, and 1970; Arizona State, 1969; and Cal State Fullerton in 1979.

Most Outstanding Player

Terry Francona, Arizona

Francona's six-game credentials included 11 hits in 24 at-bats (.458), five runs scored, six RBIs, two doubles, one triple, one home run and three stolen bases.

He led the tournament with 18 total bases and had 12 putouts and one assist, committing no errors.